Second Chances
by Heir-to-the-throne
Summary: Nothing informs life more than the shadow of death. Each appetite that sustains a living being is a counter-reaction to the inevitable end. None are more aware of the fact that everything is shadowed by death than the ones that got a Second Chance.
1. Chapter 1 : die another day

_CHAPTER ONE_

_Die another day_

_

* * *

_It was almost dark. but then, it always was in the Underworld. Never quite night, never quite day, but an eternal twilight. Tigress stood before a massive ebony gate. She could almost pick out the bones that had been placed in the gate to reinforce it against any spirit-or mortal, as the case may be- brave, or foolhardy enough to try and storm it. She had no idea how long she had been standing there. Had it been minutes? Years? Millennium? She honestly had no idea. Her memories of the living world seemed so far away now, all but one. She scowled into the ashes that coated the ground. She couldn't remember her family, or friends, but she could remember the one moment she would prefer to forget.

The moment of her death.

She had died on the bridge known as the Thread of Hope. She and her allies (who's names she could no longer recall) had battled a snow leopard there, to save a place she could only vaguely remember as _home_. The snow leopard( who's name she remembered as Tai Lung) had fought her in single combat at first, though her friends (at least that's what she thought they were.) had joined in. She remembered thinking that he had been defeated.

But he hadn't gone down yet.

He had caused the remains of the bridge to swing, bringing him back onto the lip of the cliff, right in front of them. She remembered that sharp feeling of despair when she had realized that they weren't going to win, no matter what they did. He had paralyzed them, though for his own sick reasons, he hadn't touched her. Not until she alone stood there, amid her now utterly helpless companions. But even then, she knew she was just as helpless as they were. Perhaps even more so.

She remembered what happened next in vivid detail. He had raped her, and then proceeded to break her spine, when he was done. In a skewed way, she understood his motivation behind it. he had been imprisoned for 20 years, and being the most attractive female in the vicinity, coupled with his personality and tendencies, things had taken their natural course.

She still hated him for it, though.

Tigress looked at the intimidating gateway once again, fully deciding that she was not ready to go on to wherever the passageway would take her. Not yet at least.

The tiger-spirit turned around, coming face-to-face with one of the most horrifying things she had ever looked upon.

It appeared to be some type of phantom, like her, and yet, not like her. She (for it was obviously a she) wore gaping knife wounds on her chest face, with black bloodstains soaking her tunic. It appeared to be a snow leopard, which set Tigress off quite a bit.

_"you...you will not cross over, will you? you seek to return to the world of the living? _" the phantasm whispered, almost conspiratorially. Unsure of how to respond, Tigress simply nodded.. This seemed to excite the specter.

"_Yes! yes...you will do nicely, Now I"- _But Tigress cut the being off.

"Just what exactly are you? I don't make deals with creatures I don't know the nature of." Tigress interrupted. The wraith nodded, seeming to understand.

"_yes, i understand that much...I am a Geist._" the phantom replied.

"A _what?" _Tigress asked, thoroughly confused.

" _A spirit that embodies the aspects of their death, Hence my appearance." _The Geist said, completely deadpanned.

"Ah...I thought you were just a particularly hideous wraith," Tigress replied in a sarcastic tone. For some reason, the Geist seemed to enrage her, and not just because of the fact she was a leopard.

"_Do you want to live again or not?" _The Geist screeched at her, furious at the tiger-spirits inability to cooperate with it.

"Ah ah ah...temper, temper," Tigress snickered. "O.K, I've had my fun, now let's hear about this deal." She continued. The Geist glared at her once more, then sighed.

"_I can restore you to life, but there is a catch." _The Geist told her.

"And that catch is...?" Tigress asked, almost completely hooked.

"_I come with you. We'd be bound to each others very soul, merged together as one for the rest of your existence." _the Geist told her solemnly.

Suddenly unsure, Tigress considered her options. She could say no, and walk through the gateway, something she wasn't entirely ready to do. Or she could say yes, and return to the living world, remember her past, and gain vengeance for her brutal death.

To her, it didn't seem like much of a choice.

"I'll do it. I'll make the bargain." Tigress said confidently.

"_Then the deal is struck!" _The Geist said, with such exuberance, Tigress could feel it radiating from the spirit like heat from a bonfire.

Suddenly, the world began to get brighter, and brighter, and brighter still. It became so bright that Tigress could feel herself burning. And then it became bone-numbingly cold. And the searing light faded away, to pitch black night. Then it warmed up , some. Not too much, but it was warmer than it had been. Tigress rapidly blinked her eyes- _wait, i haven't had to blink since I... _Tigress suddenly found herself gasping for breath. She could feel the soft swaddling cloth they had wrapped her in, over her usual clothes, for when they had buried her. And she could feel the smooth wood of her coffin. She felt out the lid of her casket, striking it hard several times, causing it to break. She hit it over and over, feeling satisfied when she felt the dirt begin to pour in.

_DIG! _her Geist screamed at her from within her head. _I'm not losing you yet!_

So tigress dug like a desperate mole, or other burrowing creature.

When she broke through the top soil, the glare of the morning sun blinded her, making her cry out in pain. She wriggled out of the whole, collapsing at the feet of a young Desert Cat, barely 23 years old. He wore a simple shirt and vest, with a Colt Peacemaker strapped to his right hip.

When she had recovered enough to look up, she gazed at him for a moment, first out of fear, then simple wonder. It seemed like it had been centuries instead of day since she had looked upon another reasoning being.

" Hello there," The Chinese desert cat said with a jovial smile. "Welcome to your first day as a sin-eater. Shall we go get some drinks to celebrate?"

* * *

Ok, that's my first chapter For Second Chances. yep, Tigress died violently, as the votes went. Yes, she was raped. It will be mentioned throughout the story, but i will not write anything..._descriptive_ on the subject. Deal with it. and who was this young man who just met tigress? well, you'll have to wait to find out next chapter! Review!

heir-to-the-throne,

King of random.


	2. Dedication

_Dedication_

Ahem.

Now, I know author's notes aren't technically allowed, but you know what? To hell with the site rules. Just for today, they can go to Hell. I would like to dedicate this story to my late friend, Eric. You might know him as the author "Blacktooth". Look him up. He died this March, in a car accident. And, I want all my future stories dedicated to him. So, dammit, I'm gonna do it.

If you're out there, Eric, I want you to know that we miss you, and we'll see you soon enough. You were one of my best friends, and it most assuredly wasn't your time. Rest in peace, man.

Heir-to-the-throne,


End file.
